rich_b1

Err Dan,

Thanks for the clarification, however, I wasn't referring to the mini-lab management. I was discussing film processing previously done by KM for retail stores. AFAIK, there was no public announcement on that, as KM hopes to make it an invisible process. For these customers, Kodak will use KM papers (until no longer available) and the stores will see no change.

Bill,

I agree that business abhors a vaccuum and that a smaller, nimbler player can often reduce costs, however, in our marketplace a roll of 24 exposures including double prints and a free 5 x 7 reprint retails for $4.99-$5.99. When one factors in the steadily decreasing volume and increased fuel prices and costs of the other support functions traditionally provided by film processors, that is much larger than a vaccuum, it becomes a black hole.

We did investigate providing our own services through a cooperative mini-lab arrangement, however, the cost of the logistics is what makes it economically impossible. Discount in-store mini-labs charge $6.99-$7.99 for single prints with no extras.

To give an example of how film processing is trending here, I'll use my own store's experience. Six years ago, we were sending $6,000 per month to Fuji for developing and were one of their top 5 accounts in this territory. By the time I sold the store 4 years ago, volume was down to under $4,000 per month. The new owners, while maintaining the rest of the business, with no further local competition don't even average $800 per month, and were still one of Fuji's largest accounts in the area, until they gave up most of their processing earlier this year and KM took over.

I think this example explains why film and processing operations are being curtailed by the majors and makes it difficult for even small firms to make inroads at current price levels. Even if you can account for some of the development loss to internet companies, I don't believe that the loss would be on the order of 87%; after all, we've had mail order for years only taking small pieces of the business.

Film will continue to be available, however, with fewer choices in types and fewer alternatives for processing, but at higher prices.

Bill,

There was no press announcement regarding Kodak handling KM. I manage a buying cooperative for retail pharmacy and this is what the KM folks informed a different buying group which has a contract with them the other day. It may not be global and may not even be across the US, but is the fact in our little world.

I didn't mean to infer that prices are high nor access is currently difficult in our local area, which incidentally includes New York City. I was simply following what has been the trend in the business for the last 6 years being accelerated by KM's withdrawal. In the future, if Kodak doesn't process film for our Members or any other local stores, then no one will. Yes, there are mini-labs, however, even currently, a mini-lab program is more expensive to the consumer than the processing has been from any of the "big 3". They will be forced to raise prices further and/or quit the business as volume continues to shrink. That will decrease access, which has already started happening over the last year. As you surely know, in most free markets, severely decreased access generally means higher prices. Lower volume also increases prices for the remaining business, since the fixed costs cannot be spread over as large a base.

I'm not jumping on the "film is dead" bandwagon. I'm just pointing out the reality in our country's largest market. Of course there will be films and processing available, just not with as many choices or as easily or cheaply for the masses.

There's already been a lot of good advice, and I would suggest you follow it, especially about no tripod and keeping your equipment secure & dry. I also second the suggestions for a backup body.

When I was in the Galapagos 8 years ago, the latch on my ancient Pentax ME broke, but I was fortunate that I had some rubber bands which I used to keep the film door closed and was able to save the trip (photographically). The problem is that there is no place to find even mundane supplies.

As you state, this is a once in a lifetime trip and while I agree that it is not the time to switch to digital, perhaps, if you are going to buy a backup, it might be worthwhile to get a decent digital P & S. That way, you won't have as steep a learning curve as an SLR, but it will be a good way to introduce you to the digital world.

Hopefully, you won't need the backup, but under any circumstance, ENJOY the trip and don't worry about the photography too much. I think about my visit often, yet rarely look at the photos, reliving the memories, as I consider my 7 days there the best week of my life!

I resisted the call of digital as I've always felt that film provided a greater richness. Just my personal opinion and there's no intent to restart any debate. I recently switched from film to all digital, for among other reasons seeing the handwriting on the wall, i.e. availability of reasonable priced film developing and film.

Here in NJ (USA) Kodak shuttered its processing plant a year or 2 ago. Fuji, despite its professed backing of film technology closed its plant last year and now KM is closing its plant in March. For the masses, there is maybe 1 small, local plant still processing film, with poor quality and low capacity.

Kodak & Fuji still process in other states and ship back to here, but pretty much only for a few big stores. For now, KM will be sub-contracting their work to Kodak for all the camera shops, drug stores, mini-marts, etc. they have handled since Fuji gave up that business, however, Kodak, in the past has turned their noses up at mom & pop stores. Its hard to believe that all of a sudden, they'll decide they were wrong and keep that business, especially in a time of increasing fuel prices for deliveries.

I know that many chain stores currently have mini-labs, however, IMO, it will only be a short time until the inconvenience of getting their film processed and the sure to increase cost of processing speeds up the conversion of almost everyone to digital. As that happens, volumes at the mini-labs will fall and the chains will decide to use those resources more effectively, decreasing convenience and increasing prices further. The very few professionals and die-hard amateurs still shooting film will have to use a professional lab at a cost of $15 or more a roll for developing and I can't hazard a guess at the increased cost of the more limited available film choices.

"I do not believe that anything that has previously been sold can be resold as new"

Not true. As long as something has not been used to any great extent, or that it affects performance, and all of the original materials are available and in new condition, it can be sold as new. Even demo cars with 5,000 miles or less are sold as new.

Has anyone ever purchased anything at a store like Home Depot? I don't think I've ever been able to find something where the box hasn't been re-sealed!

B & H has a 14 day return policy, which is really nice if you find something unsuitable. If they had to take a loss on every return, I'm sure they'd institute a "no return" policy like the local camera shops in my area. Every time someone returns something to a store, not necessarily photo related, do you think the merchant has to trash it or mark it down?

Check this site for a lot of information on multi-monitors.

http://www.realtimesoft.com/multimon/

It is confusing at first; just like anything you've never done. Once you understand that you need a video card that supports 2 monitors, its just a matter of plugging them in. Some folks will tell you that you just need to install a second PCI card (that's the shorter socket on the motherboard, of which there may be 4 or more), and then connect the monitors individually to each card, however, that's when the problems may occur. Also, you probably want a AGP card (that's the longer socket on your motherboard), and generally there's only 1.

I went thru this a couple of years ago, and have never had a problem on Windows XP, despite what the Mac elites say.

Thought I'd relate my experience, since it is similar to yours.

I have an Elan IIe with the same 28-105 lens and a 20mm prime for wide. 7 months ago I bought an XT with the kit 18-55 lens to "supplement" my Elan, as there was "no way I was giving up film". My plan was to use the existing lenses, since the kit lens had to be crap.

Reality is I haven't picked up the film camera since purchasing the XT and will be selling it shortly. I also found with the XT that for my preferences, the 28-105 was no longer wide enough for an everyday lens, and the 20mm was now 32mm, not wide enough for my wide lens. To my surprise and with apologies to the "L' crowd, I found the 18-55 to be a decent lens (I'm not makin huge prints) and also broke down and purchased the EF-S 10-22 for the wide shots. Have since sold the 28-105 and 20mm, which will probably, eventually fund the purchase of the 17-85 IS, but I'm not rushing, since the 18-55 is adequate.

My suggestion to you is this. Especially, if your new camera comes with the kit lens, don't buy anything now, until you see for yourself how you like your setup. Use the kit lens, use your 28-105 and any other lenses you have. See what you like & don't like and THEN, after you have some experience, decide what new lens(es) you need. As time goes on, the lens offerings expand and 6 months from now you may have better choices.

Enjoy!

I agree with a number of the comments made; i.e. carry a hip bag with a waist belt and an additional shoulder strap. I find without the shoulder support, it tends to slide down and takes my pants with it! Also, the "bandolier" style of carry for the camera itself. If you are carrying a backpack for your other things, some of them have D-rings to which you can attach straps which let the camera hang down in front of you at the ready.

I'm a big fan of Op-Tech products. The Opt-Tech Pro strap is long enough and comfortable to enable the cross body carry. http://optechusa.com/product/detail/?PRODUCT_ID=23&PRODUCT_SUB_ID=

I recently had neck surgery and can no longer use a neck strap, so I found this Bino/Cam harness. http://optechusa.com/product/detail/?PRODUCT_ID=4&PRODUCT_SUB_ID=&CATEGORY_ID=4

It is pretty comfortable, not as heavy or confining as most harnesses and has the advantage of the camera always being ready. If you want the camera protected , try the Soft Pouch Sport Harness or one of the neoprene pouch systems http://optechusa.com/product/detail/?PRODUCT_ID=37&PRODUCT_SUB_ID=

but be aware, that's kind of like using one of the old Eveready (also referred to as Neveready-self explanatory) cases.

Frank,

No matter how careful you may have been, there is an inherent problem archiving on CD's or DVD's. I've used some cheapos and they still work 3-4 years later, and some others on branded disks crapped out in a year. For all the information you never wanted on CD's, here's a link.

http://www.cdrfaq.org/

With the price of hard drives so cheap today, I clone my C: drive to another internal HD AND copy important files to an external HD. I also periodically copy those important files to CD, but am not counting on them to be there in 5 years.

"I've never lost any, but I did actually find one once"

Hey, that's the one I lost. I recognize it.

I lost the rubber part of the eyecup (plastic frame stayed on the camera) the first time I used my XT. Canon denied any responsibility for defective assembly, so I bought a round cup on Ebay for about $8 shipped. It came with a metal frame, however that was pretty loose, so I took a small piece of black electrical tape and put it on, and at the same time it holds the diopter adjestment as set.

Now, if only I could lose everything else on the camera, I could wind up with a black one instead of the silver model!

"If Wiss wan't expecting this to turn nasty he is very naive."

I have seen Don Wiss's storefront shots for a couple of years with no hackles raised. All of a sudden, over this Thomas Hawk blog, we have threats of broken necks and murders.

I'm 57 years old, live in the NY area and don't consider myself "naive". I would hope most of us are past the Dodge City, Tombstone or Untouchables-Capone mentality and feel that we can speak and act relatively freely in this country. Its certainly not perfect, but its also not some lawless narco-empire. Even most scammers don't resort to threats or violence. They just move on to greener pastures (change names) when the heat is turned up. Do we really have to fear what we say and print if its truthful?

I hope that the authorities nail these SOB's and return some sanity. Thomas Hawk & Don Wiss are doing everyone a great service, and should be thanked and supported, not criticized or any blame whatsoever placed upon them.

Biplap,

Just some thoughts about a polarizer and your setup.

You may not be aware that to use any polarizer it must be rotated to the point that you want, i.e. amount of darkened sky, amount of reflections eliminated, etc. The front element of your 18-55 lens also rotates when focusing.

While it can be done, it becomes more difficult with this combination. If you focus first, then rotate the polarizer, unless very careful, you'll put the lens out of focus. Conversely, if you "polarize" first, then focus, you'll probably change the setting on the filter.

That being said, I've used the combinations successfully; it just takes a bit more care. Polarizers should be readily available at camera shops or online at places like B & H. Its important that you get a "circular-polarizer" as opposed to "linear-polarizer" While they're both round in shape, most AF systems work better with the circular version.

Good luck

Exifer. http://www.exifer.friedemann.info/

It hasn't been updated in a few years, but is a very good program for viewing and manipulating Exif data.

"My printer has not been used that much, and clogging is a real problem. The Epson folks have advised me to turn the printer off when not in use. This seems to help. Previously, I would leave the printer on"

This printer needs to be turned off via the printer switch when not in use as the nozzles are "capped" this way. Also, at least with original Epson inks, you need to print something once a week to minimize clogging. I've had mine for about 4 years and agree that its a great printer. While I've not had a lot of clogs, they can be nasty to clear when they do occur.

Enjoy

"I mainly photograph landscapes, and often experience a need for a wider view through the lens."

If you were shooting film or full frame, you'd probably shoot wide landscapes with a 20mm lens or wider. With the 1.6 crop factor on the 350D, IMO, anything over 14mm is just not wide enough. The 10-22 is the first lens I purchased after buying this camera and I love it.

In researching that purchase, although some 3rd party lenses do seem to do a reasonable job, the EF-S seems be much better and has generally better overall reviews.

Good luck

Rob,

Hope your problem is solved, however, if not, I seem to remember that if your files show thumbnails, it can cause a problem with XP. If the problem reoccurs, change the display to icons or list.

Good luck

Colin,

How far away from the subject were you when you shot this picture? If beyond the flash's range, then essentially, you're shooting in ambient light, and the WB will not be correct if set to flash.

Also some arena lights have a yellow cast to them (I think sodium vapor lights), so you may be best to use a custome WB. Alternatively, learn to use the RAW function and you can correct in post-processing.

Good luck,

There may be other setting which grey them out, for instance, on my 1280, it defaults to borderless, which eliminates some papers. When I change the borderless click, they are restored.

Maybe something like that on the 2400?

Good luck

Check this link. It talks specifically about the bag you're looking at.

http://www.photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=68658

REPOST

Vince,

As Fred pointed out, you should take this up with your credit card company (assuming you used one to pay).

I recently had an issue with a Canon D-Rebel XT which was purchased from Best Buy. They have a 14 day return policy & wouldn't take it back since it was shortly past that time. Because there was a small dent on the hot shoe Canon essentially said I had no warranty & wanted to charge $180 to even look at it.

I put a claim into my credit card company (they have a 90 day insurance policy on purchases) and recently received a check from them for $190.80 including tax on the Canon charge.

One caution if you go this route. Do not claim that it was damaged by the seller or any other third party, as the credit card insurance will not cover any damage or loss when the item is not in your possession.

Good luck

Vince,

As Fred pointed out, you should take this up with your credit card company (assuming you used one to pay).

I recently had an issue with a Canon D-Rebel XT which was purchased from Best Buy. They have a 14 day return policy & wouldn't take it back since it was shortly past that time. Because there was a small dent on the hot shoe Canon essentially said I had no warranty & wanted to charge $180 to even look at it.

I put a claim into my credit card company (they have a 90 day insurance policy on purchases) and recently received a check from them for $190.80 including tax on the Canon charge.

Good luck

I also had a ridiculous response from Canon's NJ service center on my XT and was not able to get any satisfaction. Posted the rant on these forums and someone suggested putting a claim in to my credit card. I did that and recently received a check from them for $190.80 which is Canon's standard service charge including tax.

If you bought the camera with a credit card, check with them. Some cover loss or damage for 3 months, 6months or even up to a year.

Good luck

Here's another one from E-Bay, but made for the XT for $6.99 + $2.00 ship.

http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-EYECUP-FOR-CANON-EOS-DIGITAL-REBEL-XT-2mail_W0QQitemZ7537028785QQcategoryZ107909QQssPageNameZWD1VQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem